Author Archives: TV Gal

‘Homeland’ Button Giveaway!

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By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal®

In honor of Homeland‘s excellent Emmy wins Sunday night (so, so glad the show didn’t have to play the long game with the Emmy Awards) and Homeland‘s second season premiere this Sunday, I’m giving away two Homeland buttons (pictured above). One features Claire Danes with the caption “Pharmacy’s Closed. We’re Doomed.” The other features Mandy Patinkin with the caption “Knows Everything. Yes, Even That.”

The first person to either email me at amyattvgaldotcom or direct message me on Twitter with how Brody realized that Carrie had been spying on him will win both buttons. You must be very specific.

This contest is closed. Congratulations to Rhonda who was the first to email me that Carrie knew Brody liked Yorkshire Gold tea. Two Homeland buttons are coming  your way Rhonda!

The Emmy Awards I Care About

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Photo: Courtesy of SHOWTIME

By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal®

The Emmys are my night of nights. My Super Bowl and World Series. Forget Christmas, this is the most wonderful time of year. I still love everything about the Emmys — the red carpet arrivals, the gushy speeches, the upset wins,the bad outfits and the questionable hairstyles.

But after years of trying to accurately forecast the Emmys and failing rather miserably, I’ve realized that no matter how hard I try, I am pretty bad at Emmy predictions.  Seriously, you so don’t want to take me to Vegas.  Therefore this year, I decided to talk about the six nominees that I would really like to see win.

Outstanding Drama: Homeland

I’m still recovering from the stress that was watching “The Weekend” episode. It was one of the finest hours of television I’ve ever experienced – surprising, nuanced, and brilliantly acted. In its first season, Homeland turned every convention about an one hour drama completely around.  It was impossible to play predict-a-plot with this series. Did you ever think that Brody and Carrie would sleep together? Did you ever think Brody would confront Carrie in the middle of the season? At the end of “The Weekend,” I was convinced (kind of) that Brody was innocent, but I had this lingering thought: “What if Brody is actually playing the long, long game?”   Any show that can make a viewer vacillate convincingly between two equally believable scenarios is pretty amazing and deserves to be recognized.

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series: Claire Danes, Homeland

This isn’t just the performance of Danes’ career; it’s the performance of the season. There’s a palpable intensity to Danes’ portrayal of troubled CIA agent Carrie Mathison. You can feel that this woman is precariously teetering between sanity and the pull of her mental illness.  In her performance, Carrie’s mistakes (really should you sleep with your target? I don’t think so.) make perfect sense.  If the role of Carrie had been miscast, Homeland never would have worked as a series. Danes makes the series.

Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series: Amy Poehler, Parks and Recreation

For all the reasons I stated yesterday, Poehler deserves this win. Plus it’s really the only way to reward Parks and Recreation which was the year’s best comedy.

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series: Mayim Bialik, The Big Bang Theory

I didn’t watch the show every week until Bialik came along. She so wholly owns the character of Amy Farrah Fowler. Everything about Bialik’s performance — from the way she walks to the way she speaks — transform Amy’s funny lines into hilarious ones.

Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series: Max Greenfield, New Girl

As I talked about earlier this week, this is the right role at the right time for Max Greenfield. But a character like Schmidt is so tricky because if an actor took the role too far, Schmidt would become a joke and a joke that the audience wouldn’t care about.  Greenfield makes Schmidt outrageous while still keeping him believable and vulnerable. One of the most interesting things that happened last season was how New Girl morphed from being about the adorkable Zooey Deschanel to truly being an ensemble comedy that often focused on the friendship of the three male roommates. Deschanel may have gotten most of the attention but Greenfield made the show.

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series: Christina Hendricks, Mad Men

Last season might not have been Mad Men’s best but it was definitely Hendricks’ best. Hendricks has been nominated twice before and this is the year she deserves to win. “The Other Woman,” which found Joan sleeping her way into a partnership was devastating and heartbreaking. Hendricks’ performance haunted me for days.

Those are the six awards I care most about this Sunday. How about you? Which Emmy award categories are you most excited about? Talk about it below.You can get a complete list of Emmy nominations here.

Also I’ll be tweeting during the Emmys so make sure to follow me on Twitter at @amytvgal and let me know what you think about the show.

I’m Literally So Excited about the Return of ‘Park and Recreation’

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Photo by: David Giesbrecht/NBC

By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal®

I just wrote about how The Office has been on the decline. The exact opposite thing has been happening over at Parks and Recreation, which returns for its fifth season tonight at 8:30 p.m. on NBC.  The series positively blossomed last year. The comedy managed to make small town politics fascinating while building one of the sweetest romances on television. I was in love with show last season.

Parks and Recreation is doing everything right. Leslie Knope is naively optimistic but also smart and good at her job. This definitely was not how Leslie was at the start of the series when often she came across as the female version of Michael Scott. But now Amy Poehler has created one of the most fully realized females on a comedy today. And she’s also created one of the best female friendships on TV – I adore the relationship between Leslie and Ann (Rashida Jones).  The show judiciously gives viewers the exact right dose of certain characters. Ron’s obsession with meat and disdain for all things personal is hilarious because the show plays that note perfectly and, of course, because Nick Offerman is brilliant at the role. As he did on Everwood, Chris Pratt has made Andy so much more than  the resident dimwit.  I literally don’t understand how the show didn’t receive an Emmy nomination.  (And yes I do love Rob Lowe’s Chris. My loyalty to Sodapop is unending).

As the season begins Ben (Adam Scott, who after Jason Ritter’s Mark Cyr, is currently the second best boyfriend on TV) is off running a campaign in Washington D.C. and Leslie is trying to effect change in Pawnee as a city councilwoman.  The episode deals with the real issues of long distance relationships and differing career trajectories, features some fun political cameos (really it should only be a matter of time before Leslie’s hero Hillary Clinton decides to stop by) and is simulateonously poignant and hilarious. You really can’t ask for much more from a comedy.  (Oh, and by the way, I’m so not ready to talk about the Amy Poehler/Will Arnett divorce. I’m going to need some time to recover from that one.)

Are you excited for the new season of Parks and Recreation? Talk about it below.

‘The Office’ Returns for Its Final Season

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Photo by: NBC

By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal®

The Office returns tonight at 9 p.m. on NBC and I enter the season relieved. The show has announced that this season will be its last. No matter what happens, it will all be over soon. There’s a certain freedom showrunners and writers feel when they know they are heading towards the end. They can write towards something that is finite. So I enter the season both relieved and optimistic.

Because, let’s be honest, The Office wasn’t great last season. It’s difficult when the quality of a beloved TV show begins to decline and a series over stays its welcome.  It’s especially challenging when it’s a show that used to be fantastic. It’s not that The Office is horrible now, it simply isn’t the hilarious show it once was.  That’s partly because the jokes have become too repetitive. It’s partly because Steve Carell isn’t on the show anymore.  It’s partly because the comedy chose to focus on things most viewers don’t care about (is there anyone out there who cares about Erin and Andy as a couple? Anyone?).  And it’s partly because some of the characters have, at times, morphed into caricatures of themselves (I’m talking to you Dwight).  (As a side note, I also wish the show would stop dropping potentially interesting story lines. They did it when they jettisoned the idea that Phyllis was Erin’s mom and they do it again tonight.)

Of course, there have been other problems. James Spader never quite gelled with the show, which was odd since he seemed like her would be the perfect fit. And I simply can’t get on board with the addition of Catherine Tate’s Nellie.  Her shtick is funny in and of itself but on The Office it plays like the rest of the cast is doing a show and she’s stuck in an improv skit.

But I’m still watching The Office because every episode usually has at least one moment that makes me laugh out loud. And I’m keeping an open mind about this new season because the season premiere shows a lot of promise:

  1. First of all, the way to my remote is by adding a former Greek star to your cast. Clark Duke (Dale on Greek) comes about as a new Dunder-Mifflin employee dubbed Dwight Jr. The scenes between Duke and Rainn Wilson are pretty great.  Jake Lacy (somehow looking years younger than he did on Better With You) is the new Jim.  Their presence not only provides some good comedic fodder but it also serves as a reminder that everyone is older and it might be time for some employees to move on.
  2. There’s a tease at a very interesting plot twist involving Oscar that I hope the show explores and does not abandon (see above)
  3. The one thing I’ve always loved about the show is the relationship between Pam and Jim. The series managed to put them together without disrupting the show and has kept them consistently true to their characters. Jim is a loveable underachiever who cherishes his family but has always known he is not realizing his full potential. Pam is a homebody who realized everything she needed was right in Scranton (one of my favorite episodes is when she is thrilled that Jim bought her childhood home).  A plot development in tonight’s premiere is utterly believable and I kind of can’t wait to see what happens next.

Are you excited for the final season of The Office or did you break up with the show a long time ago? Talk about it below and remember to follow my blog so you’ll know every time I have a new post. Also with the new season starting next week, I will be bringing back both the “Quotes of the Week” and “Where Have I Seen Them Before?” If you see a familiar face or hear a great quote, write me at amyattvgaldotcom or contact me through my contact page.

Best New Shows of the Season

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Photo Credit: John Paul Filo / CBS BROADCASTING INC.

By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal®

There are some television seasons that will forever be etched in my memory.  In 2004, Desperate Housewives, Lost, Veronica Mars and House all premiered. That, as the saying goes, was a very good year.

And there are some pilot episodes that were magic immediately. I can remember sitting on my couch in 2003, putting in pilot after pilot and stumbling upon Arrested Development. I’m not exaggerating when I say I got chills the pilot was so good. Chills.

Alas, this television season isn’t like 2004 and I don’t think any TV pilot quite captures the sheer brilliance of the first Arrested Development.  But there are still some shows I am excited about.

Here are my picks for the best new show on each network:

Elementary (premieres September 27 at 10 p.m. on CBS): Yesterday I talked about how disappointing it was to have Jordana Spiro and Zach Gilford, two of my favorite TV stars, in a bad show. Thankfully Elementary is the opposite of that. Another two of my favorites -Jonny Lee Miller, who I will always adore because of Eli Stone, and Lucy Liu, who was simply fantastic on Southland last season – headline this CBS drama. And, yes, it is another crime procedural from CBS and, yes, it is another Sherlock Holmes remake. But none of that really matters because it’s such a strong pilot. I want to see more of recovering drug addict Sherlock Holmes and his equally-troubled-but-in-a-different-way sober coach Joan Watson.  Added bonus – Miller gets to use his real accent.

Nashville (premiering October 10 at 10 p.m. on ABC):  Nashville is, by far, the best new show of the season. Connie Britton (Friday Night Lights) stars as country music superstar Rayna Jaymes. As the series opens up, Rayna is facing declining ticket sales and her handlers want her to team up with teen singing sensation Juliette Barnes (Hayden Panettiere, Heroes).  Juliette doesn’t have the best voice but that doesn’t matter in this new auto-tuned world.   You know how Friday Night Lights was about so much more than football? Nashville is about so much more than country music (although the music in show is excellent). That’s why I believe the show could be phenomenal. The pilot lays out several intriguing story lines in addition to the Rayna/Juliette dynamic including Rayna’s romantic past and her current marriage, Juliette’s troubled background, and Nashville intricate political landscape. I cannot wait to see where the show goes next.

Ben and Kate (premiering September 25 at 8:30 p.m. on FOX): Nat Faxon is one of those actors I totally root for. Years ago he was on the short-lived comedy Happy Hour. The show was awful but Faxon still managed to make me laugh. He always can make even the lamest material pretty hilarious. Ben and Kate makes the most of Faxon’s many, many talents.  Faxon stars as Ben, the older, immature brother of Dakota Johnson’s responsible Kate.  Kate has a five year old daughter Maddie (Maggie Elizabeth Jones) and a best friend BJ (Lucy Punch, whose performance in the pilot is a little too much like Catherine Tate’s Nellie on The Office). Everyone here, including Echo Kellum as Ben’s best friend Tommy, is pretty great and the script is smart and quick. But it’s really Faxon who makes the show. Whether he’s telling five-year-old Maddie that she’s naïve or rehearsing how he’s going to win back his ex-girlfriend, Faxon is uproarious. Last year, Max Greenfield exploded because Schmidt was the right character at the right time with the right actor. I believe and hope that Ben will do the same for Faxon’s career.

Arrow (series premiere October 10 at 8 p.m. on the CW): Arrow is definitely the best new show the CW has this fall. But it didn’t have much competition for that title given that Beauty and the Beast and Emily Owens M.D. are the CW’s other new shows. However, here’s what makes me think Arrow could be great. The show has found a true star in Stephen Amell who headlines the series as Oliver Queen. You’ve probably already heard about his abs, which are put on terrific display in the pilot and ads for the series but Amell also has the gravitas to pull off the role of a ne’er-do-well playboy who returns home five years after everyone thought he was dead. (Because it was driving me crazy when I was watching the pilot I will tell you that Amell played the paramedic who romanced Violet last season on Private Practice).  The other thing the show has going for it is executive producer Greg Berlanti. Berlanti is the man behind Everwood, Brothers & Sisters and this summer’s addictive Political Animals. His presence makes me think Oliver’s backstory and family dynamics will become extremely entertaining.

Go On (Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on NBC): Matthew Perry excels at playing the guy with a sardonic exterior that belies the sweet and sensitive guy underneath. This was the persona he perfected for ten seasons of Friends and this is the persona that’s present in Go On.  Sportscaster Ryan King is an older version of Chandler Bing (look their names even rhyme!) It’s a role that allows Perry to be funny and heartfelt in the same episode. The premise provides a rich environment for comedy and pathos – a man grieves the loss of his wife through a wacky therapy group. The show has a strong supporting cast including John Cho as Ryan’s boss and Tyler James Williams as Owen, a teen in Ryan’s group.  Go On is still finding its rhythm but both the pilot and the second episode had several moments that made me laugh out loud. Could I be any more excited?

Those are my picks for the best new show on each network. Talk about which new shows you are most looking forward to below.

This week I will also be talking about the season premieres of Castle, The Office and Parks and Recreation and, of course, the Emmys.  Follow my blog so you’ll know every time I have a new post.

Worst New Shows of the Season

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CR: Nathaniel Bell/FOX

By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal®

Into every season, a bad TV show must fall. And a slew of bad shows are about to come raining down on your TV.

I have spread the dislike around and have picked the worst new show on each network. My usual caveat applies – sometimes bad or average pilots can become great shows (for instance, I wasn’t necessarily wowed by the Revenge pilot last season). But these five shows have the most to overcome.

Mob Doctor (premiering September 17 at 9 p.m. on FOX): Giving this show a bad review makes me sad. I simply don’t like it when two of my favorite actors end up in a clunker. Jordana Spiro stars as Dr. Grace Devlin. She’s a brilliant surgeon when she’s not being called upon by the Chicago mob to do their medical bidding. (Mob Doctor also wins this season’s award for most literal title). Zach Gilford co-stars as her boyfriend and fellow resident Dr. Brett Robinson.  Pause for a moment, won’t you, and reflect on the possibility of a series starring P.J. Franklin (My Boys) and Matt Saracen (Friday Night Lights). Savor this image. Now completely obliterate it from your head because Mob Doctor is so not that series.

Beauty and the Beast (premiering October 11 at 9 p.m. on the CW): Beauty and the Beast, starring Kristin Kreuk and Jay Ryan as the title characters Cat and Vincent, is not only the CW’s worst new show but it’s also the worst new show of the season (you’re breathing a sigh of relief right about now aren’t you, Malibu Country?) Honestly if I didn’t know this was an actual real show I would swear it was a Saturday Night Live skit. (And even as I write this, I’m not completely convinced that this whole thing isn’t for an episode of Punk’d).  I mean it is kind of hilarious that the producers think that taking the very, very attractive Ryan and giving him a strategically placed scar makes him a beast.  But even taking away the CW propensity for prettying everything up, the show is seriously flawed. It’s melodramatic, poorly acted (Kreuk remains not the sharpest tool in the acting shed and it doesn’t help that the show has made Catherine a HOMICIDE detective) and completely uninteresting. At the end of the pilot, I didn’t care if Cat and Vincent ever got together and that’s not good.

Malibu Country (premiering November 2 at 8:30 p.m. on ABC): There are some shows that set expectations from the moment the cast is announced. And when you have Lily Tomlin in your cast, I watch the show with one solid expectation – that the show will be funny. And Malibu Country simply isn’t.  Reba (I seemed to have missed the announcement when she dropped her last name, but she just goes by Reba now) stars as a country singer who raised a family in lieu of pursuing her career. She divorces her no good, cheating husband Bobby and heads to Malibu with her mother (Tomlin) and two teenage children.  Sara Rue pops up doing her best Real Housewives spoof as Reba’s new neighbor Kim. The one semi-bright spot is Jai Rodriguez of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy who plays an assistant who could help Reba’s career. I always liked him and it is kind of fun to see him on TV again.  Reba’s WB show Reba had a certain amount of charm and except for a few minor changes Malibu Country is basically the same premise. Perhaps it will develop some charm as time goes on. But I’ve got to think ABC knows they have a stinker on their hands or they wouldn’t be waiting until November 2 to premiere it.

Guys with Kids (premiering September 26 at 8:30 p.m. on NBC): If you caught last week’s sneak peek, you probably already know what I’m going to say about this show. Guys with Kids is cut from the comedy cloth that wives are nagging presences who husbands must endure, deceive or ignore in order to have any fun.  These three guys – Gary (Anthony Anderson), Chris (Jesse Bradford) and Nick (Zach Cregger) – are also raising children. So that means that not only can the show touch upon every cliché about being married but it can also run through every cliché about having children. Good times. The show does have moments of inspiration. I thought , for instance, it was pretty funny that Chris’s ex-wife Sheila (Erinn Hayes) actually did have a date with Kareem Abdul Jabbar. But rare moments of inspiration don’t make a show.

Partners (premiering September 24 at 8:30 p.m. on CBS):  To be clear, Partners is the worst new show on CBS but it’s nowhere close to being the worst new show of the season. My major issue with the comedy is that it’s basically Will & Grace: The Saga Continues. Except this time instead of a gay man being best friends with a straight woman, a gay man (Michael Urie) is best friends with a straight man (David Krumholtz). Brandon Routh (Superman) and Sophia Bush (One Tree Hill) are their significant others. Urie is positively charming as the needy but well-meaning Louis and the rest of the cast is equally strong.  But everything about the show – the sexually suggestive double entendres, the slapstick humor, the over-the-top characters – is very, very familiar.

So those are my picks for the worst new offering of each network. Don’t worry, we’ll have more bad shows to talk about as the new season launches (I’m talking to you Emily Owens, M.D.).  I’ll be back tomorrow with my picks for the best new shows of the season. Talk about which show you are least looking forward to below. And don’t forget to follow my blog so you’ll know every time I have a new post.

Which New ‘American Idol’ Judge Are You Most Excited About?

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Photo by Evan Agostini/PictureGroup

By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal®

Years ago, I was sent to review a concert in Boston. I can’t even remember who the headliner was now (maybe Tim McGraw?). But the opener for the opener was Keith Urban. I had never heard of him. I wasn’t familiar with any of his songs.  But about five minutes into his set, I thought, “Who is this guy? He’s amazing.” Seriously, if you’ve never seen Keith Urban live in concert, you need to. Put that on your bucket list right now.

The next day I went out and bought all his CDs (that shows you how long ago this was, I was still buying CDs). And I’ve loved him ever since. As I like to say, I loved Keith Urban long before Nicole did.

So I’m very excited Keith Urban is one of the new American Idol judges. I broke up with the show last year and didn’t even miss it. Not even a little bit. Not once. (And many of you know how difficult it is for me to break up with a show). But I really don’t know if I will be able to pass up the chance to see Urban on TV once a week.

This got me wondering, which new American Idol judge are you most excited about? Or does the recent announcement of new judges have no impact on whether or not you will watch the show. Talk about it and vote below. And don’t forget to sign up to follow my blog. That way you’ll know every time I post something new.

An Open Love Letter to ‘Parenthood’

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Photo: Chris Haston/NBC

By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal®

Dear Everybody Involved in Parenthood:

As I write this letter, I am thinking about the following:

  • I need to buy my toddler new shoes and I want to do it before my coupon expires.
  • I’m worried that I’m not watering our newly hydroseeded lawn correctly.
  • I must finalize plans for my husband’s birthday.

Can you imagine how boring my life would be if it were a TV show? (Does Amy’s lawn grow grass? Tune in next week for the thrilling conclusion of our special two-part episode.)  But this is where the sheer genius of Parenthood comes in. You somehow turn the utter minutiae of life into a compelling drama.  A child who doesn’t want to go to school. A family deciding to get a new dog. A missing lizard. In your capable hands, all of it becomes fascinating to watch.

I have long said that family dramas are the most difficult to successfully pull off. There are no crimes to solve, patients to save, or cases to litigate. Each week, you must successfully pull viewers into the Braverman family’s life without having any built-in hook you can write around each week.  I want to be a Braverman. I want to call up Kristina (Monica Potter) and have coffee with her. I want to babysit Max (Max Burkholder) and Jabbar (Tyree Brown). I want record in the studio run by Crosby (Dax Shepard) and Adam (Peter Krause) and I can’t even sing. Seriously, I’m in love with your show and in awe of what you are able to do each week.

Now that you know how I feel, let’s talk about Ray Romano. I have long been a fan. Honestly I was watching Everybody Loves Raymond back when it was on Friday nights and I’m pretty sure his parents and I were the only ones watching. I thought Men of a Certain Age  was a brilliant and vastly underrated show that demonstrated that Romano was so much more than just a funny guy.

BUT his presence on Parenthood makes me nervous. I adore Mark Cyr (Jason Ritter). He’s one of the very best TV boyfriends ever created. And as much as I love a good love triangle, I really don’t think we need one here. Let Mark and Sarah (Lauren Graham) have other conflicts – they can fight about their wedding, their engagement, their careers, their age difference — really I’m fine with anything. Just please, please, please don’t break them up. Please don’t let Sarah fall for Hank.

Thanks ever so.

Much love,

Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal

Who is your new favorite character on ‘Glee’

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By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal®

Last night we were introduced to a slew of new characters on Glee. Who is your early favorite? Rachel’s dance teacher Cassandra? Puck’s half-brother Jake? Fabulous singer Marley? Rachel’s new potential love interest Brody? Bitchy new cheerleader Kitty? Or the fabulous Wade/Unique (I know he’s not totally new but I’m counting him anyway since we only saw him in two episodes last season.)

Vote for your favorite and then talk about it below.

‘Glee’ Returns for Season 4!

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CR: Kwaku Alston / FOX

By Amy Amatangelo, TV Gal®

Adding new characters to an existing and popular show is tough to pull off.

Sometimes it’s an absolute failure. I’m pretty sure no one shed a tear when Nikki and Paolo died on Lost.

Sometimes it just doesn’t quite work. I usually always enjoy James Spader but his character on The Office never really came together. Everyone involved with the show seemed to know from the beginning that Robert California wouldn’t be around that long.

But sometimes a character addition can take a show to a whole new level. It’s hard to even imagine Lost without Ben but Michael Emerson didn’t come to the island until the fourteenth episode of the second season.

I didn’t start really enjoying The Big Bang Theory until Mayim Bialik and Melissa Rauch joined the gang.

As the photo suggests, Glee enters its fourth season (tonight at 9 p.m. on FOX) at a crossroads. To keep the show relevant and believable (as believable as a show like Glee can be that is), the series had to let the seniors graduate. That means, of course, a whole new crop of students need to be successfully introduced in a relatively short amount of time. Will you become attached to them? Will I? I’m not sure.

The show also made the interesting, and I would say creatively brave, decision to follow the students who left the New Directions behind. So tonight you’ll see Rachel in New York where her new dance teacher (Kate Hudson) is not amused by her antics and Kurt (Chris Colfer) stuck in Lima working as a barista.

The big question is: Can the series pull off what are essentially two shows simultaneously?  Tonight’s premiere (9 p.m. on FOX) inspires confidences that it is possible while not entirely quieting all my fears. Now the Glee cast is more unwieldy than it ever was (and it was pretty unwieldy to begin with) and I’m concerned that some characters won’t get the story lines or the numbers they deserve while others will just become an afterthought (I mean how often did we see Mercedes’ boyfriend last year?). And, be forewarned, there are quite a few notable characters missing in tonight’s premiere.

But,concerns aside, I did like the premiere and here’s why:

  1. Kate Hudson is fantastic as Rachel’s dance teacher Cassandra July. Cassandra is viciously honest and it’s kind of great to have Rachel realize that her talent and charm might not be enough. Based on the premiere, I think this could be the role of Hudson’s career. I never really gave Hudson a lot of thought but I plan on paying close attention to Cassandra.
  2. There’s one new student at McKinley High that I’m VERY excited about. I won’t spoil who it is but I will say that I was so rooting for him/her to enroll this year.
  3. Mike O’Malley. Any time he’s on the show, it’s great. He’s great. The scene tonight between Kurt and his dad is so poignant that I double dare you not to cry.
  4. The musical numbers. These have always been the show’s get out of jail free card. Even the worst episodes usually have one or two great numbers. And tonight every number is pretty fantastic.

So while I’m not necessarily convinced this new format will work, I am cautiously optimistic. And I applaud the show for attempting this – for not having the students on a six year high school plan, for not trying to keep all the graduates in one place (I’m glad they didn’t all decide to go to, for example, Lima University), and for taking a realistic (again realistic as defined by Glee) approach to how life really works. People move on in new directions – to new places, new friends and new adventures.  If Glee can pull this off, it will be an impressive feat.  One worth singing about.

Make sure to follow me on Twitter (@amytvgal) or follow this blog to get notified every time I have a new post.